Second jailer jailed for sex with inmate

Miller County jailer charged with one count of sexual contact with a prisoner

Lake Sun staff

An investigation into allegations of sexual misconduct in the Miller County Jail has led to the arrest of a second jailer.

This time, the former jailer had worked for the Miller County facility for five years.

Ronald W. Perkins, 44, of Eldon, turned himself in to authorities Tuesday after being charged with one count of sexual contact with a prisoner. He is currently free on $5,000 bond.

Perkins signed a confession admitting he had sex with an inmate under his watch on one occasion, according to information provided by the Missouri Water Patrol, which led the investigation.

The sexual contact apparently took place in the control room of the jail. It was consensual, according to Lt. Nick Humphrey of the Water Patrol.

On Sept. 9, former jailer James Gavett, 33, was arrested on four counts of sexual contact with a prisoner. The charges stemmed from four encounters with an inmate in the jail’s kitchen area. The acts in that case were also believed to be consensual with the same inmate on all four counts.

The allegation against Perkins and a second inmate was the result of the investigation into the alleged incidents involving Gavett.

Gavett is being held without bond. He has requested the court appoint a public defender to represent him.

“We believe that barring any new information or allegations, all leads have been followed and thoroughly investigated,” Humphrey said.

“We feel confident that any other allegations of wrongdoing in the Miller County Jail would have turned up during our investigation,” he said. “This is one of those situations that no administrator in any profession, including law enforcement, can foresee or prevent. However, Miller County Sheriff Bill Abbott acted quickly and proactively when the allegations came to his attention.”

The arrest of the second jailer concludes the Missouri Water Patrol’s investigation. The Water Patrol took over the investigation at the request of Abbott to avoid any appearance of impropriety or conflict of interest, Humphrey said.